Every building materials company could benefit from being more focused. I have never seen a building material company that is too focused and I’m not convinced it would be possible.
That’s because the benefits of being focused are practically endless.
The More Focused You Are:
· The easier it will be to make a sale
· The harder it will be for a competitor to make a sale
· The easier it will be to defend your price
· The lower your cost per sale
· The more effective your marketing
· The more your team will outperform the competition
· The more loyal your customers will become
The 3 Levels of Focus
1. Know What You Are Selling
Most of you are selling a product that provides a benefit to a particular audience or customer. Some of you are selling a commodity product, which means what you are really selling is the benefits of doing business with your company.
If you understand this difference, you will know where to concentrate your efforts to increase your sales.
2. Prioritize the Big 4
The Big 4 Markets Are:
1. Commercial New Construction
2. Commercial Retrofit/Repair/Remodel
3. Residential New Construction
4. Residential Retrofit/Repair/Remodel
You may have a product that works in any type of building or project, but the more you focus on one of these markets, the more successful you will be.
3. Focus on the Best Type of Customer or Building
Pick a type of customer, building or project where you want to grow.
With customers, it could be larger contractors, custom home builders, university facilities managers, or rock star architects. The more specific you can be, the better.
Or you can focus on a type of building or project or geographic location where you see a big opportunity.
If you are focusing on a specific type of customer, your goal is to be the company that knows more about the customer’s business than any of the other building materials companies – especially your direct competitors.
If, on the other hand, you decide to focus on a type of building, project, or geographic location, your goal will be focused on the buildings themselves. You’ll need to do the research and gain the knowledge needed to position yourself as a trustworthy expert on these types of buildings and the special challenges that come from building or operating them.
Great things happen when you focus like this:
· Customers want to meet with you
· Your sales approach shifts from delivering pitches to providing guidance
· Your marketing becomes more effective
· Customers have stronger reasons to want you
What You Can Learn from Warren Buffet About the Power of Focus
When I did my own annual planning this year, I learned about Warren Buffet’s 5/25 Rule.
This is a simple rule with powerful results. You start by listing the 25 things you want to do. Then, you rank them by priority and circle the top 5.
And here’s where things get interesting: the remaining 20 things on your list aren’t secondary concerns, nice-to-haves, or things you’ll work on when you have things. No, they’re things you’ll avoid at all costs.
Now that’s taking focus seriously!
(Here is a helpful article if you want to learn more about the 5-25 Rule).
The Takeaway
The More You Focus, The More Your Sales Will Grow.
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